Who are you?
by mospeadafan84
Summary: Rook ran away to escape from Scott's endless campaign on combating the tyranny of the Invids upon the citizen of earth.


**Untitled**

Rook marveled at the sea view from the balcony of her small motel room. By now she is far away, away from the rest of team Bernard whose target is to get to the Reflex Point and find the Flower of Life, the source of life for Invids to keep on surviving on earth. The evening breeze swept into her face and the sun is about to set beautifully across the Pacific.

She had decided. After months of saving the world's ass and kick the pincers and scouts butts, it's time for her to release the stress she's been keeping inside by taking a sabbatical from the group. Although Scott and Rand opposed strongly to her intention, she stood strong by it and went through.

"I had enough," she told Marlene and Annie about her idea of getting off for a while. "These Invid fighting thing has got me gone crazy. I need a break."

"I understand that," Marlene replied. "Just go and follow what your heart says."

"She's right," Annie said. "Don't let them kill you with all these stress. Actually I too need that sort of break. Let me join you, please!"

"Maybe next time," Rook laughed. Marlene laughed too while Annie mumbled silently.

It was a beautiful morning in the Pacific Coast, greeted by the stunning and warm sunshine. Rook enjoyed her first decent breakfast of freshly baked bread and hot brewed black coffee. She then took a walk around the town and did some shopping. Rook dropped her room key at the reception and left the lobby.

"Reminds me of the old pictures of Sarajevo," Rook told herself, as she looked around the condition of the town.

Buildings were partially or some, completely destroyed due to the war waged between Zentraedi and the Invids. Instead, people of the town led a normal life. Children running around, old folks strolling and the young lovers spent their morning kissing at the roadside cafés. Feels like home, Rook thought and smiled alone.

Rook went back to her hotel room in the afternoon. She held a few shopping bags contained new clothes and stuff essential to women that she had never had in the last 15 years after she joined the Snakes and Team Bernard (post-Snakes). She wanted to out them on but something inside her said that she should keep it later.

"Maybe I should surprise those boys that I'm now a reformed woman," she said to herself.

As she sorted her things out, she realized that she had one thing bought left at a shop downtown. Rook took her keys and went out. As she walked out of the hotel, the streets were empty. The shops and cafés left unattended; no children running and playing around and the lovers were all gone. Something odd is going on, she thought.

Rook mounted her cyclone and took it to the back lane of the street. She dismounts to put her protective suit on. Suddenly she heard someone running from her back. The footsteps were clear and crisp as it has just passed. She tilted back and saw a shadow. Suddenly, up in the sky, a strange V-formation appeared.

The formation looked like no other than a group of migrating heron to escape winter at first; as it gets closer, they were a troop of Invid scouts looking for their next victim.

Rook switched the cyclone to Battle Armor mode; she flipped her targeting screen on the right shoulder and made a 360-degree turn to scan. Five strong scouts were standing high and ready to rumble. She quickly aimed for the middle scout's cyclopean eye and blew it off. The scouts scattered as one of them fell to the ground. By now, she was dancing against the destruction discs shot at her.

She then ran across the shooting scouts and leaped over the second in the middle. The scouts were unable to detect her presence as she was on top of the other. Using her rifle, she banged the scout's top armor and flew down to the ground unnoticed. The centered mecha went berserk and fall.

There's only three left and this it's gonna be real tough, she whispered to herself. Rook needs to strategize and destroy the scouts and so does the purplish monsters. I can't fly anymore because it'll deplete my power, she thought.

A black Battle Armor similar to Scott's stood next to her. It has a Japanese mask of red and white stripes etched on its bodywork. The helmet was a full-faced helmet used in motorcycle races back in the 20th century etched with the same image on the armor. It has the word 'Arai' inscribed on the forehead – a famous helmet brand back then. The pilot wore a mirrored visor and is difficult to identify.

The soldier confronted the three scouts and finished them off one by one. He had a few tricks under his sleeves and used it to send these monsters back to hell. He leapt on to the top of an abandoned building where he can get a better aerial view. The pilot then kneels, forwarded his forearm launchers, targeting the middle scout in his reticle and launched his RPG missiles.

The twin missiles went into different directions. The first hit the targeted scout on the belly while the other broke the one on its left. The last one managed to leave, and left the spot as a pool of green liquid oozed by the broken monsters.

"I never see you around here before," the pilot muffled, flipping his visor up.

The pilot's face was partially masked by the black vinyl breather from the nose down to his mouth. He wore a silver-rimmed spectacle and has a mixed look of Caucasian and Asian, notable through his small eyes.

"I'm just come for a visit," Rook answered.

"I'm Rook. Rook Bartley of Brasilla," she extended her hand for a handshake.

"Trent. Trent Ukawa," the pilot replied, shaking her gauntlet hand. "Part American and part Japanese. My dad's Japanese actually."

That evening, Rook had her dinner with Trent. Later, she felt bored and slipped into Trent's working room. The young pilot was working on a 5th grade-like school project. He was bare-chested, exposing muscular chest that would be impenetrable by any of the annihilation discs.

"You have a nice helmet," she complimented after seeing the helmet he wore when they first met. "I like the graphic etching. It's as the same as the one on your cyc."

"Actually the helmet belonged to my dad and he passed it to me," said Trent. "I did the Japanese mask etching. It's a kind of tribute to my dad's honor."

At least he knows who his dad was, Rook thought. How lucky he was compared to Rand or Annie.

"How long have you been into this?' she asked Trent as she sat on his cyclone's pillion seat. "I mean the cyclone?"

"Three years ago," he replied. "I was an apprentice, working with Dr. Emil Lang."

Emil Lang, she thought. He sounds familiar to me but where did I heard his name?

"At the same time I joined the Cyclone Squadron of the Mars Base," he continued. "Then I quit the squadron, moved here and settled down."

Rook smelt a strong masculine scent as Trent sipped from his mug. It must be the smell of the deodorant, she thought as she noticed his hairy armpits.

"You've been asking about me so much," said Trent, soldering the circuit board. "Tell me about yourself."

Rook was heavy-hearted but since Trent is sincere and ready to tell him his story, she decided to do so. She told him about her hometown Cavern City, Team Bernard and all the battles they went through.

"Amazing," he quipped. "I mean how come a girl like you can go through all of that in just months?"

"That's the perk of being a tough cookie," she explained. "You have guts and everything goes well-done."

The first dawn of December was shocked by two explosion made by the Invid scouts who once again attacked the town. Rook and Trent awakened as they heard the sound which occurs one kilometer from their shelter.

"I can't let them destroy the town," Trent said. "I need to teach them a lesson on respecting the civic law."

"I'm going with you," says Rook. "I won't let you fight alone."

The pair went suited up and straddled on their cyclones towards the town center, where the monsters are 'partying'.

As they arrived at the scene, four scouts and three pincers have destroyed half of the town. Reconfiguring to Battle Armors, Trent and Rook started to plan an effective strategy to wipe these creatures out.

Rook came up with an idea: Distracting the monsters by sprinting across to catch their attention, trap them and finish them off for good. Trent agreed and worked it out as planned.

She braved herself running swiftly across the Invid troopers. As the troopers noticed her presence, they began forwarding annihilation discs and plasma shots, but managed to duck them out.

"Get ready with your weapon, they're on their way," she told Trent through her tac net.

"Copy that," Trent replied. He slammed his clear visor down and got his assault rifle on hold.

The monsters are getting closer to the trap. Earlier, one pincer went down after being shot by Rook. From afar, she gave a signal and he shot his thrusters above the road end. The monsters crammed into each other and have no space to move.

15 minutes later, the duo began a mini massacre and destroyed all of the Invid mechas at ease. Trent utilized his assault rifle while Rook with her cannon until not a single left. Unnoticed, a mangled Scout slowly stood up and fired out the last bolt, targeting Trent on its sensor.

The hovering soldiers were contented and lingered on air. Rook noticed an incoming object directed towards Trent.

"Trent, behind you," she cried.

Trent turned and the plasmid shot lanced into his left chest sensor, striking him backwards and shook the mecha on air.

"Urgh," Trent cried and the pierced spot exploded like a small firework in the sky.

Rook flew closer. She saw a medium-sized smoking cavity with wrecked wires protruded out, dispersing an amount of electric blue sparks.

"Are you alright?' she asked, holding his shoulders.

"I'm fine. I have another sensor working," he breathed out and gave a weary look. "Let's move from here."

The mechas left the battlefield and headed to a safer place. The dawn is almost near. Suddenly, they saw a nice spot: an old and abandoned building. The soldiers stood together, looking to the east. Both were in Battle Armor mode, watching the sun rises as their hard work paid off. Trent retracted his targeting computer and focused on the sunrise.

"What are you doing?" Rook asked.

There was no answer. Instead, a message was sent over to Rook and displayed on her HUD:

RECORDING THE SUNRISE FOR YOU

AS A KEEPSAKE. ALMOST READY…

As she finished reading the message, Trent pulled a holodisc off his shoulder and handed it to Rook.

"This is for you," he told her over the helmet's mike. "I hope you'll keep it forever."

"How did you do it?" she asked. "Mine can't do the same as yours."

"Actually I had my mecha modified by myself," he said. "I wanted to extend its use so I add some new features."

He puts the disc into her hand and pressed it. Rook nodded her helmeted head and pressed it against her left headlight.

The morning breeze blew from the Pacific Coast and straight to the land, bringing in the scent of the ocean with it. Trent flipped his visor upward to let the fresh air into his helmet. At the same time he let out the pleasant smell of his aftershave.

Rook stood in front of him and overshadowed the sun. She runs her fingers on the sides of his smooth faceplate.

"You know what?" says Rook, with gleaming visor. "You are the most pleasant scented mecha I've ever seen."

"Maybe I was designed to be a hygiene-freak robot," Trent replied. "Because in Japan, Samurais don't fight when they're not clean and so do I."

She laughed and sends a soft strike over his armored chest. Trent smiled. The mechas then exchanged hugs. Before parting ways, Trent told her to be careful on her way back.

Rook flew down to the ground and reconfigured her armor back to motorcycle mode. As she cruised away, he gave her a salute and shut his visor.


End file.
